Tesla Engineering students to unveil EcoFridge at MIT
June 25, 2009
by Kathy Walsh Nufer - Appleton Post-Crescent
After months of research, planning, tinkering and refining
prototypes, a team of new Tesla Engineering Charter School grads is
unveiling its environmentally friendly EcoFridge.
But theirs will be no ordinary reveal. This week these 18-year-olds
are with their boxy invention in Boston for EurekaFest at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
The Tesla contingent is one of 16 teams in the nation picked this
year as a Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam, and one of four teams picked to
present.
MIT's InvenTeam initiative is meant to promote science and
engineering and inspire a new generation of inventors and
entrepreneurs.
"I'm a little bit nervous but definitely confident," said Mike
Leveille, project co-leader who will study mechanical engineering
at Michigan Tech this fall. "We have only 8 minutes to present and
there's going to be some real smart people out there in the
audience."
The EcoFridge is basically a refrigerator upgrade that takes
advantage of winter temperatures to reduce energy consumption. The
idea has been out there, but no one seems to have pursued it to
this extent, Leveille said as he and teammates put finishing
touches on their presentation and the fridge last week.
Practical as well as innovative, it amounts to an interior add-on
the size of a 12-pack of soda, plus a vent to the outside.
As co-leader Tylor Rathsack told Board of Education members during
a recent practice presentation, "Installation takes two hours and
any handyman can do it. Screw a few things in and you're good to
go."
Rathsack will join Leveille at Michigan Tech in the fall.
"It was an interesting project, and something different to do this
year," said Josh Ritzman, who will start at the University of
Wisconsin-Fox Valley this fall with plans to get his electrical
engineering degree from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.
"Getting to present in front of a bunch of engineers and inventors
adds a little something."
Garrett Custer, who will study mechanical engineering at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison, said he didn't think the project
would be "this much work, but it was worth it."
Sean Schuff, Tesla lead teacher who left Tuesday to drive the
EcoFridge to Boston in his van, said he thinks the amount of
commitment required surprised everyone.
"It's a true engineering project, and that's the point to Tesla,"
he said. "This shows them how in-depth and involved a project can
be, and reinforces their career choice. This is something way more
than a desk caddy."
The team, which also includes Appleton East graduate Nick Behnke
who handled the business side of the project, flew out Wednesday,
and is spending four days in Boston. On their itinerary is not only
a showcase of inventions, but a design challenge pitting them
against other young inventors.
Sanjay Wahal, senior scientist and research fellow at
Georgia-Pacific in Green Bay, the team's major sponsor, served as a
mentor for Project EcoFridge, and thinks the team will do well.
"They've done a superb job and they required minimal mentoring," he
said. "They were able to think on their own, ask the right
questions and they knew what they were doing all the time."
Getting to share their final product with a lot of interested
students and professionals at EurekaFest should be "pretty cool,"
Custer said. "I will be there to answer their questions. "I hope I
have the right answers."
Tesla is not the first local team to participate in the
Lemelson-MIT program. Last summer, a team from Brillion High School
presented its EZ-Lift invention, designed to be easier to use than
a forklift, at EurekaFest.
Additional Facts
Tesla InvenTeam Fridge Facts
Problem: 99.5 percent of Americans own refrigerators, which consume
an average 17.2 percent of their household's electricity.
Solution: EcoFridge inventors say it can help consumers realize
more than 82 percent in energy savings.
